Erosion Control

We are just back in from the Minnesota Erosion Control Association Conference.  It was held at the DECC in Duluth the last 3 days.  Great workshops and a whole team of people learning and sharing about ways to help keep water clean by helping keep soil in its place.
We also learned about phosphorus coming from leaves that fall off trees in the fall, stream geomorphology and tools that people use to restore streams.   The importance of compost, the importance of planning for projects - including having plans for well beyond the time activity occurs at a site (mine reclamation), and also ways cities can fulfill permit requirements through training staff and local businesses that might be a source of polluting activities (such as restaurants with grease).  The city of Duluth gave a presentation on recovering after the 2012 flood - pictures showed how intense and changing the high water flow had on numerous streams.  Woody debris - even whole trees - were swept in the streams and blocked culverts.  Stream banks had considerable erosion creating the reddish plume in Lake Superior that lasted for weeks.  Repairs have been made to roads that suffered from water damage and plantings have been put in some of the main disrupted stream banks.  Restoration continues.

An exhibitor area had products ranging from native plant landscaping to products to use to make permeable pavement areas to engineering places that have products to insert in storm drains.  Above ground and below products and learning better management and education outreach reduce pollutants and sediment from entering our local waterways. 

Here is the link to the event http://mnerosion.org/
This was the first year MECA held their conference in Duluth. 
Thanks for bring the conference up north to advance the area's knowledge and techniques with controlling erosion.

Here is a link to the WI DNR with more stormwater and erosion control practices.
http://dnr.wi.gov/topic/stormwater/construction/erosion_control.html

Illicit Discharge

It sounds a little scary, doesn't it? Illicit discharge IS scary, making it the perfect topic to cover leading up to Halloween.  We're also working on illicit discharge sampling right now so I'm thinking about it pretty often.  Illicit discharges are discharges into the stormwater conveyance system that are not composed entirely of stormwater.  They often contain sediment, nutrients, bacteria and toxic pollutants.  In other words, illicit discharge is anything flowing through storm sewers that isn't rain.

So what makes up illicit discharges? A lot of different things can be illicit discharges. Sanitary wastewater (sewage) can end up in the storm sewer system through cross-connections: when a sanitary sewer is connected to the storm system.  Leaking oil and other fluids from vehicles parked outside can end up in storm drains.  When you wash your vehicle in the driveway, the wash water can go down the storm drain. Grease containers stored outside of restaurants can tip over and spill. Soil can be washed off of construction sites.  There is a list of potential illicit discharges on our website here.
We find illicit discharges in a few different ways.  The first is, as I mentioned previously, sampling.  We determine if there are illicit discharges in our storm sewers by sampling during dry weather.  When it's dry, nothing should be flowing through the storm sewers. We visit the stormwater outfalls (where the water leaves the sewers and enters streams, rivers, and the lake) when it's dry to see if there's anything coming out.  If there is, we take a sample and find out what's in it.  Once we know how much ammonia, potassium, fluoride, and detergent is in the sample, we can determine what kind of discharge it is.  Sometimes, it is tap water or a natural water source.  Other times, it is sanitary wastewater.  When we've figured that out, we try to figure out where it is coming from and eliminate the source.  We don't want illicit discharges because most storm drains in Superior don't lead to the wastewater treatment plant; they go out into the streams, rivers, and lakes without treatment.  We need to make sure the stormwater is as clean as possible so that we're not polluting our water bodies.
The other way that we find illicit discharges is with the help of everyone in Superior. We have an illicit discharge reporting form on our website at www.ci.superior.wi.us/idform. We also have a hotline that anyone can call at any time to let us know about potential stormwater pollution: 715-394-2761. If you see someone's car leaking, piles of pet waste concentrated in one area, litter covering a storm drain, or anything else you think could cause stormwater pollution, err on the side of caution.  Give us a call and we'll look into it! We need everyone to help us out to eliminate illicit discharge.

 For further information about illicit discharge, you can watch the webinar Wendy presented recently here.

-Written by Jillian Schubert Edwards

Shoreline and Streambank Management

Today I wanted to write about a topic that doesn't necessarily apply to everyone, but is just as important as other, more widely applicable topics.  Shoreline and streambank management aren't endeavors you can undertake if you don't live on a stream/river or coast.  However, it is still important for you to know about these things so that if you see, say, an unmanicured beach area, you know why it is important that we allow native plants to grow along the water rather than grooming beaches and shoreline areas. 

What is it?  Shoreline and streambank management use a variety strategies to keep shorelines and streambanks stable. Some of these practices include: restoring native vegetation, live staking, brush layering, and many more.  

Why do we need it? Developed shorelines and streambanks, or those without native vegetation, can contribute to a lot of problems. 

Erosion: When shorelines are developed or native plants are cleared so grass lawns give way to sandy beaches, there is an increased risk of erosion.  Usually, soil is held in place by plants and their roots.  Plants also “intercept” rain, meaning that rain hits the plants and is either absorbed or slowed down before it hits the soil.  This prevents erosion because the impact of the rain is decreased when it hits a plant first.  Waves, ice, and surface runoff have more of an impact when native vegetation is removed.

Flooding:  As native vegetation and coastal wetlands are filled, the potential for flooding increases.  Coastal wetlands “absorb” water and store it in, preventing flooding to areas further upland.  Without these natural sponges, there’s nothing to stop this water from flooding upland.  Development can also contribute to flooding through impervious area increases.  Impervious surfaces are those into which water can’t be absorbed, or infiltrate.  Roofs, driveways, roads, sidewalks, and parking lots are all examples of impervious areas.  When it rains on impervious surfaces, this water “runs off” into lakes and streams rather than soaking into the soil.

Water quality: If a lot of erosion is occurring on a shoreline/streambank, all of that sand or soil is going into the water.  Too much sediment in the water is bad for aquatic life.  Also, if you are fertilizing or using pesticides on your lawn and garden right on the water’s edge, those substances could end up in the water.  

Excess nutrients from fertilizers can lead to algal blooms.

These issues don’t just impact the water and the environment.  They can cause problems for you as well.  It’s not great for your home if the ground beneath it is eroding away or if it is regularly flooding.  Ugly algal blooms probably aren’t what you want to see out your windows, either.

What can you do to protect your shoreline/streambank?  Don’t remove native vegetation if you have it.  Make sure you know what species are native and which are invasive.  If you have invasive species, find out the most effective ways to eradicate them.  If you don’t have any native vegetation and have a lawn going to the edge of the water, you should stop mowing the lawn by the water.  Plant native plants in these areas.  Native plants are great because many of them are just as beautiful as non-native ornamental plants, they are often drought resistant, and they attract birds and other wildlife. There are other strategies for streambank/shoreline management, so see the links below for more information.

US EPA

UW Extension

-Written by Jillian Schubert Edwards

Climate Change and Stormwater

 With the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Doha, Qatar wrapping up this week, the topic of climate change has been making headlines all over the world.  While climate change has the potential to impact all aspects of our lives, we're going to focus on the possible effects on stormwater.

Rising global temperatures can lead to more extreme weather events (larger storms, longer droughts, etc.)  More intense rainfall events can bring increased flooding, runoff and erosion.  This could lead to major issues for many municipalities as stormwater conveyance systems were built with historical weather events in mind.  Municipalities may not be equipped to handle frequent, intense storms that could become the normal with increasing temperatures. 

So what does this mean for you?  More frequent extreme weather events that current stormwater conveyance and storage measures cannot handle could lead to flooding and property damage.  Some ways to mitigate these effects include: decreasing impervious surfaces to allow for more stormwater infiltration, planting trees and maintaining riparian buffers to prevent erosion, and using low impact development (LID) practices for new development.  Implementing preventative measures now can help us weather the storm in the future.

To learn more about climate change and stormwater, visit these pages:

University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute

United Nations Climate Change Portal

Wisconsin Initiative on Climate Change Impacts Stormwater Working Group

-Written by Jillian Schubert Edwards